Exposed: The Mediator
by Chaplin04
Summary: There's Something Sweet about something Forbidden. Cassie had never spoken to Rob so the last thing she expected was for him to despise of her the first time they met. Rob knew what he was looking for, but he never meant to fall in love with the enemy.
1. Chapter 1

**NOTE: This is an original story. Nothing is based on real people or events. This is not twilight or heroes fanfiction. If you like them though, you might like my story. This is just a preview. You can watch the book trailer for more info on how to purchase the book in it's entirety here: .com/watch?v=h0cYg062yGA**

PREFACE

SITTING THERE, I KNEW THIS WAS THE END OF my life; this was a battle I had lost the moment I had been dumped here. Maybe even before that. I didn't blame them though. They were only trying to protect me.

I didn't even try to fight back. I didn't care what happened to me anymore. They were gone and I couldn't live with myself knowing that I was partially to blame.

I avoided his widely amused eyes and let my mind wonder to a happier place. I concentrated on _his_ face. Then on the smaller details, like his hazel eyes, his voice –– encouraging me to fight back –– and the security I felt in his presence. The same security I felt now just from picturing him.

I wished I could say I had no regrets, but I had one. All of the chances he had given me to admit to him that I loved him, and I never jumped at the chance because I was scared. But it was too late to change that now. I wasn't going to see him ever again. I could only hope that he knew.

I was pulled back into reality when I heard a spark. He was hovering over me, taunting me with the element that would soon end my life.


	2. Chapter 2

DREAM

I WAS EXHAUSETED. I GOT IN THE SHOWER and let the hot water relax my muscles. I was tense, and I had been for some time now, but not for any logical reason –– at least not a reason I could come up with. Sure there was school, but school didn't really stress me out. It was my senior year, but the work wasn't challenging. I went through my normal shower routine very slowly. I didn't get out until the water got cold. I was expecting to get in trouble for it later when the water bill arrived.

I dried myself off and put on my pajama's –– an oversized Beatles t-shirt and a pair of gray sweats. I threw my towel in the hamper behind the door before exiting the bathroom. I was startled to see my mom standing there.

"Geeze, Mom!" I gasped, clutching my hand to my chest.

She frowned at my reaction. "Sorry, I just wanted to make sure you didn't drown or something."

"Very funny," I said dryly.

"You've been in there for awhile hon…"

"I know, sorry."

Claire placed a concerned hand on my shoulder. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine." I lied, knowing that I didn't sound the least bit convincing.

My mom looked at me suspiciously for a minute –– she seemed to be aware that I was lying. "You sure?"

I nodded. "Really, Mom, I'm just tired."

"That's all?" she continued to pry.

I was extremely aggravated at this point. I shook her hand off my shoulder. "That's all!" I retorted shortly.

"Don't talk to me in that tone, Cassie! You've been acting strange for at least a week. What's going on?"

"PMS!" I lied defensively.

"You expect me to believe that?" she asked, glaring at me as she folded her arms in front of her chest.

My eyebrows pulled together. "Yes!"

The downside to being an only child and living alone with my mother was that she noticed _everything_ and blew it all out of proportion.

"Is it a boy?" she wondered. "You're not…" she broke off suggestively.

I gawked at her accusation. "No, Mom!" I barked.

"You're awfully short tempered, Cassandra. Are you lying because you know I'll find out if you are." She warned

"I don't even have a boyfriend, Mom. You know that."

She shook her head slowly, "That doesn't mean anything."

Apparently neither did my word. "You're seriously considering this ––" I stopped myself short. I wasn't about to finish that sentence. It wasn't worth it. I still couldn't digest her accusation. It wasn't like her to point fingers at me. "Good night, _Mother_," I said curtly, turning my back on her and stalking off to my room.

As much as I wanted to sleep and forget that whole conversation had ever happened, I couldn't; I had a history test in the morning that I desperately needed to study for. I sat down at my desk and opened my history book to the chapter on the Civil War. I couldn't concentrate on any of it though, my head was still reflecting on the argument. I gave up around three in the morning and climbed into bed.

I dreamt I was in a forest, not somewhere I recognized. It was dark and cold. I was standing on a bridge that crossed over a small creek that ran through the forest. I was waiting for someone, staring into the trees. The strange part was I didn't know who I was meeting.

Occasionally I heard some noises –– branches breaking, leafs crunching on the forest floor. Every-which-way I turned no one was there. An eerie feeling washed over me as I heard someone walk about behind me. I tried desperately to turn on my heel to face whoever it was, but my feet would budge. I fixed to the spot.

When I stopped panicking, the eerie feeling went away. I couldn't see who was behind me, but it wasn't them I was afraid of. In fact, my feelings couldn't have been more opposite. I felt a strong connection to this person, an unbreakable bond. The mysterious person took my hand and I instantly felt safe. Worry and fear vanished. But still, something was very wrong. I turned to admire the face of my protector – but then I woke up.


	3. Chapter 3

FIRST ENCOUNTER

WHEN MY ALARM WENT OFF I GROANED AND pulled the covers back over my face. Sure, it was Friday, but I had only gotten a few hours of sleep. I was beginning to regret staying up half the night studying for an exam I knew I was going to fail regardless.

I lay like that for a good five minutes. Eventually time caught up with me and I had no choice but to get up and face the day. I unwillingly tossed the covers away from my face and rolled out of bed.

I stared at my reflection in the mirror across the room. I took two steps towards it and tripped, gasping in pain. I looked down and saw that my history book was to blame. I attempted to kick it out of my way, but the book didn't budge and I stubbed my toe in the process. "Owe!" I hissed; grabbing my foot and hopping around my room until the pain subsided.

I approached the full length mirror that hung against the far, pale green wall of my room.

My comforter was a shade of cream with a mauve damask pattern on it. On the adjacent wall –– to the left of my bed –– was where my antique, wooden dresser sat; angled against the wall because of the window –– which faced out into the backyard.

I sighed at my reflection. I unsuccessfully tried to smooth the bags that were under my eyes with my index finger. As I tried to manually tighten the skin in several places on my face –– just to see what I would look like; my mom called up to me from the bottom of the stairs. "Cassie are you up?"

I opened my bedroom door and yelled down to her, "I'm up. I'll be down in a minute." I didn't mean to sound so crabby, but I almost couldn't help it.

I looked at myself in the mirror one last time, now focusing on my hair. Since it was already doing its own thing, and I wasn't in the mood to fight it, I pulled my long blond hair into a ponytail and then headed over to my dresser.

I pulled out a gray t-shirt ––that happened to match the sky on this particular March morning –– and paired it with my favorite shirt –– navy blue, hooded sweatshirt; I always wore it on test days. It didn't bring me luck, it was just comforting. I found a pair of jeans in a clothes pile on floor; I was pretty sure they were clean. I had been telling myself for weeks that I needed to clean my room, but kept finding excuses not to. I was determined to get some cleaning done over the weekend, even if it meant getting my mom on my case.

I walked back over to the place where I had abandoned my history book, picked it up and hurried to the kitchen.

Claire was putting her grading book into her brief case. She was a first grade teacher at the local elementary school. She loved kids, but after she had me she was never able to get pregnant again.

I looked absolutely nothing like her. As a matter of fact, I looked nothing like either of my parents; I used to seriously wonder if I had been adopted. My long, wavy blond hair and blue eyes, not to mention my short stature –– a mere five feet two inches tall –– were no match to them. Claire, on the other hand, was gorgeous. I envied her short, curly brown hair, and big brown eyes. She was at least six inches taller than me. My dad –– I didn't see him very often anymore –– and I shared one common feature; we both had the same blue eyes. He, like my mother, was also brunette and tall, like six-foot something. So how I ended up blond and short was a complete mystery.

My parents separated three years ago. They were still married, but lived separately. It worked out better that way for all of us. My dad traveled a lot and it was really hard on my mom, so they separated. I was okay with it. My dad and I weren't very close or anything because he was never around. My parents had date nights set aside so they could still spend time with one another. After all, they were still in love. I thought it was extremely cute.

My mom eyed me curiously when I sat down at the table with a bowl of cereal. "You're wearing _that_ to school?" she frowned at me.

"Is there something wrong with it?" I asked, looking down to examine my clothes.

"No, she paused. "I just thought you might have worn the sweater I bought you yesterday."

I was sort of embarrassed by the fact that my mom still picked out clothes for me. I didn't know many other girls my age whose mother's still shopped for them. It wasn't that I didn't appreciate it –– because I so did –– it was just awkward. But she was very fashion forward. The only reason she did it was because she wanted me to be more girly, and I mean Barbie girly. I was girly, just not to her liking.

"I'll wear it tomorrow." I compromised. That obviously wasn't what she wanted to hear because she kept staring at me. "What?" I groaned.

She hesitated before responding. It's nothing really," she said uncomfortably. I think you have a zit," she said tapping under her left eye.

I sighed. "Mom it's not a zit. It's a scab, or a scar, or something…" It definitely was not a zit. It had been there for so long I hardly noticed it anymore. It was so small I was surprised she had noticed it.

Claire looked unconvinced. "Right," she said as she dug through her purse for her car keys. Once she found them her attention switched back to me. "Make sure you eat something," she said, pointing to the cereal I hadn't even touched. She picked up her briefcase and headed towards the door. Claire waited at the door for a response.

"Don't worry, I'll eat." I lied. Then she was gone.

Nine times out of ten I never ate breakfast. The cereal in front of me was all a show. I wasn't really a morning person and that concerned Claire. She always used the 'breakfast is the most important meal of the day' line on me, especially before a big test. It always made me feel nauseous. I soaked the spoon in the milk a few times before getting up from the table. I poured the uneaten cereal down the drain, and then hurried out the door. I could no longer avoid it; I had to leave now or I would be late for school.

When I pulled into the parking lot I regretted leaving so late. I had to drive around three times before I found a spot near the back of the lot. I took a deep breath as I glared at the large brick building ahead of me. With only fifteen minutes to spare before first hour, I pulled my backpack off the passenger's seat and into my lap, swinging one strap over my shoulder as I got out of the car. As I crossed the parking lot all I could think about was how much I couldn't wait for this day to be over. I had two whole hours before history, and I dreaded every tick of the clock.

I made my way through the crowded halls –– over one thousand-two hundred students –– to my locker to dispose of the books I didn't need. I crouched down to pick up my calculus folder from the bottom of my locker. Someone lightly tugged my pony tail, and I flinched; my calculator when crashing to the floor. I heard a giggle and recognized it at once as my best friend Hailey.

"Wow, what's wrong with you?" she teased.

"Nothing, I didn't get much sleep," I complained as I retrieved my calculator.

"Sorry," Hailey apologized in an exaggerated tone.

I shut my locker and we walked to calculus. I was actually dreading calc more than my history exam. I hated math, but by some weird twist of fate I happened to be really good at it. "I only got four hours of sleep last night, so don't expect me to be anything but cranky." I said conversationally.

Hailey's eyes were wide. "Only four hours? What were you doing last night?" The tone of her voice made my lack of sleep sound scandalous.

"Studying," I said flatly.

She smirked, so I knew she wasn't buying it. "Right, _studying_," she enthused using air quotes.

I hit her arm. "History test third hour, Hail. And it's not like I'm seeing anyone, so don't go there. And even if I was ––"

She interrupted my rant. "Chill, Cassie." Hailey said, sounding a little defensive.

We walked into calculus class and took our usual seats near the back of the room. The bell rang a minute later. Mrs. Cooper walked in, and without so much as a good morning, class, began the lecture.

I wasn't paying attention. I had my history notes out –– I was pretty confident that I could figure out today's lesson on my own. I read and reread my notes on the Civil War throughout the hour. I was certain I had at least a C average in history, but I needed to keep my grade there. It was March and graduation was in May, I couldn't afford to let my grade slip now.

Time was not on my side; calculus was over almost as soon as it had started. I had chemistry next. I knew I wouldn't get any last minute studying done in that class.

Chemistry flew by. I wasn't sure what our lecture was over; I had spent the entire hour trying, no, forcing my eyes to stay open against their will. I was relieved when that class ended, but it suddenly struck me that my next class was history. I dragged myself to class in defeat.

I sat in my seat –– the last desk in the row next to the window. I glanced over my notes one last time, trying to commit every word I had written to memory. Mr. Jackson entered the room just as the bell sounded. I closed my notes and put them on the floor under my seat.

Mr. Jackson spoke enthusiastically, "Alright put your notes and books away." He had the tests in his hand. I watched in horror as he handed a stack of tests to the first person in each row. I was so preoccupied watching the rest of the class gloomily receive their tests that I wasn't paying attention to my own row.

"Cassie!" A deep voice hissed unexpectedly.

It startled me and I jumped a little. I tried to hide my embarrassing reaction by shifting in my seat. I turned my attention to the person sitting in front of me, Randy Bateman. He stared at me through narrowed eyes, holding out a test for me to take. "Sorry," I sighed, as I took the test from him. He didn't respond. Randy quickly spun around and began scribbling down answers.

I stared down at the test in front of me. I read through some of the questions before writing any answers. I was happy that I knew some of the answers for sure. Maybe I would actually do better than I anticipated.

The rest of the day moved quickly. It was already seventh hour and I had English. I just had to make it through one more hour and then I would be home for the weekend.

As I turned into Mrs. Parker's classroom, I almost immediately collided with another student who happened to be exiting the room at the same time. I looked up to apologize.

He was tall, brunette, wearing a plain white t-shirt –– that flatter his physic –– and a pair of jeans that actually fit his waist, as opposed to the baggy jeans that most guys wore hung around their thighs. His name was Rob Fox, and his last name did his appearance justice. Most of the girls referred to him as "McFoxy" behind his back. I caught on to the humor in the nickname eventually.

Rob had moved to Springfield two years ago with his twin sister, Audrey, and their father, so rumor had it anyway. I knew who he was –– everyone did; but I had never spoken to him or had had a class with him until today apparently.

"Sorry," I apologized awkwardly as I tried to slide out of his way.

He smiled for a moment, and then it became a sort of dance. We kept mirroring each other's steps in an attempt to get out of the way. Rob grabbed my shoulders, smiling with his eyes as he gently moved me aside. –– he had the most amazing, unique hazel eyes I had ever seen. I had barely moved an inch before his hands were off me and he was abruptly glaring. He shoved past me and out of the room.

I headed for my seat in the middle of the room, but stopped short when I noticed someone else's books and leather jacket were already occupying my desk. So instead, I took the adjacent seat.

I gave my undivided attention to Mrs. Parker, watching as she walked slowly, but confidently to her desk at the front of the room. She smiled warmly to the class and then turned her attention to the white board. She picked up a marker and scrolled Beowulf across the board. She was probably in her late fifties; her gray hair was always pulled back into a bun. She wore glasses and skirts, too long for her petite frame, making her appear shorter than she already was.

The bell rang just as Mrs. Parker had finished scrolling Beowulf across the board; she turned to face the class again. "Today," she began cheerfully. "I want you to pair up and rewrite the first one-hundred lines of Beowulf into your own words." She stopped and pondered for a moment. "Let's see…" she said, pressing her index finger to her lips. "Everyone pair up with the person to your right."

I looked over my shoulder. McFoxy was sitting to my right. I hadn't even seen him come back into the room. I had had a dull morning, but things were suddenly looking up. Before I could say anything, he spoke.

"Partners?" he smiled warmly.

His voice was just as smoldering as the rest of him. It sent chills down my spine.

"Uh, yeah…" was all I could manage to say on top of an awkward grin. Maybe I had just imagined him glaring, or maybe it wasn't me he was angry with. How could it have been anyhow?

Our eyes met and I practically melted when he smiled at me again. I continued to stare at him even though his attention had turned to the open book on his desk.

A fraction of a second later his head snapped up and he looked at me through narrowed eyes, like he was inspecting me or something; Rob's expression suddenly become oddly conflicted.

I was taken aback by the blatant change, and looked away. He was glaring again, but it was a strange expression, like he was trying to hide it or something. If he _was_ trying to hide it, he wasn't succeeding.

I frantically opened my English book and flipped through the pages trying to find Beowulf. Once I found the right page, I pretended to read it. I was too self conscious ton really pay attention to what I was reading. I could see out of the corner of my eye that he wasn't looking at me anymore.

"Let's make this easy on ourselves," he said bitterly, catching me by surprise. "I'll rewrite the first fifty lines and you can write the other half."

I nodded. I figured it was the safest response. Clearly I hadn't been imagining his angry stare a few minutes ago.

"Look…"he paused uncertainly. "I think we'll get it done a lot faster this way. And no offense, but I don't work well with others. I'm very independent."

"Fine." I retorted, keeping my eyes on the book in front of me.

After staring at the book for several more minutes, I looked up to see what Rob was doing. He was vigorously working on the assignment. I should have been doing the same, but I couldn't help but wonder why he was being so rude. It wasn't like he had a reason to dislike me, we had literally just met.

Rob shifted in his seat and then looked up at me. He must have noticed me staring. I would have looked away, but I wanted to read his expression again. He was still angry. His lips were pressed together in a tight line, his eyebrows pulled together. His left hand was resting on top of his desk in a fist.

"Are you going to start the assignment sometime today?" he spat.

I was under the impression that he was trying to intimidate me. I don't think he liked me staring. I wasn't afraid of him though. I was more curious than anything.

I took a deep breath. "What is your problem?"

He glared at me. I don't think he was expecting me to question his attitude. "You can't be serious…" he trailed off in a cold tone.

"I'm sorry, what?" I asked, shocked by his dodgy reply.

"Don't you _know _who I am?"

Ego maniac crossed my mind, but I kept that to myself. "What were you like in a movie or something?" I asked dryly. "You're Rob Fox, so what?"

"Brilliant observation," he muttered.

"There's more?" I pressed. I had to hear his answer. There was no way I was dropping the subject now.

He didn't respond at first. He looked at me trying to determine if I was being sarcastic or not. "Drop it okay?"

"Not okay," I hissed.

"Excuse me?"

"What's your damage?" I seriously wanted to know.

"My damage?" he repeated in the same aggravated tone. All of a sudden a twisted smile appeared on his face; like he was enjoying an idea behind the question. His expression creeped me out more than it probably should have.

"Well you seem to be struggling with the fact that we're supposed to be _partners_ on this assignment." I emphasized.

"Maybe I am." He admitted shamelessly.

"Why?"

Rob laughed. He was acting very strange. For someone every girl in the senior class was head over heels for I didn't understand what they all saw in him. All I got out of our time together was that that he was an 'independent', ego maniac; jerk.

There was nothing special about him. The only thing that worked in his favor was his good looks. That was all he had going for him from my perspective. I had never been one to judge a person on a first encounter, but I made an exception this time. Rob could have been the poster child for the expression, "Don't judge a book by its cover."

"You know I really don't want to fail this assignment so you should get started on it sometime this semester." He scowled.

I wrinkled my nose, and looked down at the book to begin the assignment.

When the bell finally rang I grabbed my books, planning to exit the room dramatically. Maybe Rob was had the same idea because he was almost to the door before I had even left my desk. I picked up my pace and shoved past him through the doorway, managing to knock him into the doorframe in my haste. I didn't check his reaction, I just continued on my way.

All I could think about as I left the building was what reasons Rob could have had for not liking me. Had he caught me starring? Was he offended by it? Was it something I said?

The weird part was that it actually bothered me that he seemed not to like me. Why did I care? There was just something about him. He seemed to think I should be afraid of him, or at least he wished I was. Why, out of all the people at our high school, was he trying to intimidate _me_? Rumor had it that Rob was a nice guy, but after meeting him; his nice guy persona was shattered in my book.

"What's got you so worked up?" Hailey wondered, as we made our way through the parking lot.

"Nothing," I muttered.

"I know you better than that, Cassie."

"It's just this guy ––" I began.

Hailey skipped and clapped her hands with delight. "A guy!" she squealed. "I need details, stat!"

I shook my head. "No, it's kind of embarrassing."

"What happened?" she pressed, trying to hide a giggle.

"I'll tell you later."

Fine, but at least give me a name." She pleaded as we approached my car.

That was when I saw him. He was standing at his car with his sister, Audrey. They were parked in the row ahead of me. Rob's eyes met mine briefly, and then he looked away and said something to his sister.

I looked at Hailey. "Him," I said, lifting my chin to hint in his direction.

Hailey whirled around to check out the mystery man. "Rob Fox!" she gasped with excitement.

I immediately clapped my hand over her mouth. Everyone around us ––including Rob –– had probably heard her.

"Shh!" I begged.

Hailey's eyes fell apologetically and I dropped my hand.

"Sorry!" she whispered. "I can't believe it! Where did you meet? How did you meet?"

"We got paired up in English."

She looked confused. "You never mentioned him being in your English class."

"That's because he _wasn't_ until today."

Hailey pondered that for a moment. "Details!" she prodded.

"He was rude the entire time. I don't know what girls see in him."

"Rude," she paused. "Really?" Hailey wondered in disbelief.

"Yeah he was trying to intimidate me or something. And his ego is about as big as the school."

"Bummer," she replied gloomily.

I quickly glanced over at Rob again. He and Audrey were getting into their car.

"Hailey I'll talk to you later okay? I said quickly, unlocking my black Saturn and climbing in. She nodded and headed to her car.

I backed out of my parking space quickly, cutting Rob off in the process. It was unintentional. After all, He was in my way. Had he purposefully gone out of his way just to irritate me even more? Never-the-less, I was more than happy to cut him off. Rob laid on his horn, but I ignored his road rage and sped away.


	4. Chapter 4

YET

THE WEEKEND WENT BY TOO FAST. I WAS dreading English. I even considered ditching, but my mom would have my head on a platter if I actually went through with it.

I just couldn't figure out why Rob went from Mr. Nice Guy to complete jerk in less than sixty seconds. It wasn't like I had provoked him. I only snapped at him after he had made it absolutely clear that he didn't like me. I hadn't said or done anything to him up to that point. Whatever his problem with me was, I wasn't going to let him see that it bothered me. But I was determined to make it perfectly clear that I wasn't going to let him walk all over me.

At lunch, I sat down next to Connor. Hailey leaned

across the table to speak to me. "So, what happened on Friday?" she asked in

a bubbly tone.

"I told you I don't know."

Ashley, who was sitting next to Hailey, interrupted our conversation. "Does it matter? So, one person doesn't like you." She said coldly.

Ashley wasn't one of my favorite people. She was always so negative and had an opinion about everything.

"No you're right, it doesn't matter." I agreed with her. "But you should have seen his face."

She shrugged. "I've seen it." She smiled blissfully.

I rolled my eyes in distaste.

"Maybe you should just ask him." Hailey suggested.

I stared at her in shock. "Yeah, I'll just go up to him and ask if he really hates me or if I was just imagining it." I said curtly.

Ashley grinned. "I'll do it!" she offered in a dreamy tone.

"No!" I objected as I took another bite of my ham sandwich.

Ashley laughed.

I scanned the cafeteria hoping he wasn't there. Luck wasn't on my side. I spotted him sitting with his sister and some of their mutual friends on the other side of the cafeteria. "Great," I grumbled.

Conner, who had not been involved in the conversation up to this point because he was busy talking to Dan about some hockey game, looked at me and then followed my gaze. "What?" he wondered in an indifferent tone. He figured it out before I had a chance to answer. "Oh, Rob Fox huh?" he chuckled. "Personally I ––"

I smacked his shoulder to prevent him from finishing whatever remark he was about to make.

"Owe!" he exclaimed, still laughing.

Dan leaned back against his chair so he could see around Connor and me. "I didn't know you knew he existed."

I slumped down in my chair, folding my arms across my chest uncomfortably. "It's not like that. Stay out of it!" I demanded.

They weren't buying it. Dan and Conner burst out laughing and continued to tease me about the situation.

I got up to throw my garbage away. It was an excuse to get away from the table for a minute or two. I purposefully walked down to the garbage cans at the other end of the lunch room. I passed by Rob's table and my eyes met Audrey's. I quickly looked away. I could still see her watching me out of the corner of my eye.

Like her brother, Audrey had hazel eyes. She was just as pretty as Rob was handsome. Her wavy brow hair stopped just under her shoulders, she was perfectly tall and thin.

Audrey's stare wasn't angry like her brother's had been. She looked to be more curious than anything else.

When I walked into English class at the end of the day, I saw that my seat, previously occupied by Rob, was empty. I glanced around the room and saw Rob sitting in the back corner on the other side of the room.

I sat down at my desk, relived that I wouldn't have to deal with him today. My mind wondered as I waited for class to begin. What was he doing in this class anyway? The semester was almost over and he hadn't been in Mrs. Parker's class all year. Why did his schedule change now?

When the bell finally rang, Mrs. Parker immediately started class. "I want you to continue working in pairs on Beowulf. Please remain with the same partner you worked with on Friday."

Gloom washed over me and I wanted to die. I had done my half of the assignment and I was sure Rob had finished his. What were we supposed to do for the next hour, glare at each other? I sank in my chair and put my head down on my desk.

"Cassie," Mrs. Parker called from the front of the room. "Are you feeling ill?"

I thought about lying so I could leave the room, but I didn't want to give him the satisfaction. I slowly lifted my head. "I'm fine," I said through gritted teeth.

"Good then, get to work." She smiled.

I looked over my left shoulder and almost had a heart attack. Rob was already there and I hadn't even heard him sit down.

"Scared?" he asked in a cold tone.

I rolled my eyes and looked away from him.

"I take that back. You're annoyed."

"Brilliant observation," I replied in utter distaste.

His forehead creased and his eyes narrowed. "Did you finish your half?" he asked roughly, his question sounding more like an accusation.

"Yes," I sneered. "And your half?" I mocked his tone.

"Done." He said dryly.

At least he didn't look like he wanted to strangle me today –– not yet anyway. His attitude hadn't seemed to have changed much though.

I was so caught up in what it was that bothered him about me that I spoke without thinking. "So, what did I do?" The question tumbled out uncontrollably.

Rob stared at me. He looked confused. "Excuse me?" he asked in the same accusatory tone.

My eyes narrowed. "Did I do something?" I repeated bitterly.

All confusion was suddenly wiped clean from his face. He stiffened, and his eyes were wide with furry. "Did you?" he asked angrily.

I almost couldn't believe how serious he was being.

Now _I_ was confused. "No," I said, but it sounded more like a question. "I just don't understand why…" I paused trying to think about what I was really trying to ask. "Why do you act like you despise me? Or why _do you_ for that matter? Did I do something?"

Rob looked puzzled. Even a little shocked that I had asked. "You didn't do anything…yet." He replied darkly.

"Yet?" I repeated in disbelief.

He looked at me through skeptical eyes, like I was missing something. Like I should have known what he was talking about, like he shouldn't have had to explain it to me. "Yet," he said in warning. Then he turned his head away from me, directing his attention elsewhere in the room.

As I drove home all I could think about were his words, that I hadn't done anything _yet_. What did that even mean? I wasn't planning on doing anything ever. Although the more I thought about it; I contemplated the possibilities. What still bugged me was that I was still dwelling on the subject. Maybe I could get my class schedule changed. Maybe I could be in the class he was taken out of, but I quickly changed my mind. No. I was going to stand my ground. I hadn't done anything to him yet nor would I ever.

I pulled into the driveway and slumped over the steering wheel. I closed my eyes, taking deep breaths in an attempt to relieve stress. When I felt a little better, I got out of the car and stalked into the house.

My mood improved when I entered the house and smelled the aroma of my favorite meal; meatloaf.

"Smells good," I said appreciatively as I walked into the kitchen.

My mom smiled. "So, how was school?"

My eyes dropped to the floor. "Fine," I lied.

"You sure about that?" she asked with concern.

I looked up at her again. "Really, Mom, school was fine." I told her, trying my best to sound convincing.

She brushed the hair that that was resting over my right shoulder to my back. "Good. And Jack," she paused. "I mean your father is coming over for dinner tonight."

"So that explains the meatloaf." I teased.

Claire laughed, seeming slightly embarrassed. "It's your favorite, too."

Dinner with my parents was nice. It was just like it had been when we all lived together. Except instead of conversation mostly revolving around work, my parents mainly talked about me. They asked me about school and college in the fall, and then there were all the stories they brought up about all the trouble I got into and the silly things I did as a kid. Of course they had to discuss all of the embarrassing moments as well. All I could do was laugh it off.

It was around ten when my dad finally left. I said my goodnights and went up to bed.


	5. Chapter 5

BURN

I COULDN'T SLEEP. I LAY IN BED STARING AT the ceiling for the longest time. It had to have been after midnight. I closed my eyes and let myself give in to the dark.

I saw an older man sitting behind a desk. He looked very professional, in a gray suit and tie. I assumed he was a business man of some sort. His eyes were tightly shut and he had his fingers on his temples.

"Are you sure?" he asked with an underlying tone of furry in his voice.

"Well, I'm not positive." A voice responded from somewhere in the darkness.

I couldn't see who had spoken. I could only see the

older man; everything else was hidden behind the darkness.

The old man's eyes flew open and he slammed his fist hard onto the desk. "Damn it!"

A different voice spoke. "Isn't it better this way?" the voice asked innocently.

"No!" The man bellowed as he lifted his hand from the desk and covered his eyes. He looked like he was in pain.

"What do we do, then?" The second voice asked eagerly.

"We wait." The man replied impatiently.

I woke up, the next morning, completely confused by what I had just dreamt of. I narrowed it down to watching, too many of those mobster movies. When I finished mulling over what could have caused my strange dream I looked over at the clock on my nightstand. I had over slept. "Shoot!" I exclaimed as I jumped to my feet. I rushed like mad to get dressed. I ran down the stairs, snatched my backpack, and dashed out the door to my car.

When I got to the school lot I was surprised to see a few close spaces. I parked as close to the school as I could manage. I wasn't dreading leaving my car so much now; I wouldn't have to walk far in the cold today. Under better circumstances, that alone would have made my day.

We had a sub in calculus, so naturally we spent the entire hour doing busy work. I thought seriously about ditching chemistry; we were doing some sort of lab that required fire and chemicals. I didn't trust myself enough to complete the experiment without causing an explosion.

Putting my fears aside I decided it wasn't worth the trouble I'd be in for ditching, if I got caught. I just hoped that my lab partner, Justin, was better at lab experiments than me.

I talked to Justin for a few minutes before the bell rang. Hailey had a huge crush on him, so every now and then I put in a good word on her behalf. I was beginning to think he was interested in her as well because he asked me about her a lot these days.

The bell rang and Mr. Doyle began class with the promising command of, "Please work with your lab partner and complete today's experiment. The directions are on the board and the supplies are on the back counter," He pointed to the back of the room as he spoke.

I turned around to look at the supplies that were laid out on the back counter. My stomach dropped when my eyes fell upon a certain someone instead. "No-o." I complained to myself as I slowly turned around and put my head down on the table.

Justin sounded concerned when he asked me what was wrong.

I didn't answer.

Justin's hand was on my shoulder now, shaking me gently. "Cassie?"

I sat up and looked at Justin; he looked nervous. "It's nothing." I said a little too harshly.

Justin took his hand off my shoulder. "You sure?" He asked as he looked behind us to see if he could spot what I was reacting to.

I nodded miserably.

He stood up, and said, "I'll get the supplies," then he headed for the back of the room.

As I waited, all I could think was that this had to be some kind of joke. Now Rob was in my chemistry class, too? If he was trying to irritate me it was definitely working. And if he was so concerned about me doing something, then why was he following me? No, stalking me was more appropriate. Shouldn't he have been avoiding me? I wished he would. I twisted around to see if Justin was done gathering our supplies. I also wanted an opportunity to scowl at Rob.

Rob was sitting two tables behind me. He was talking to his lab partner, Kristy Yates, about the experiment, I assumed.

Kristy sat very close to him, twirling her black hair, giggling, and nodding as he spoke. Pathetic, I thought to myself. Then Rob's head snapped up and our eyes met. He sat there staring at me with an underlying edge in his almost careless expression.

Kristy glanced up at me at once. She gave me a reproachful glare, obviously upset that I had stolen Rob's attention away from her. I quickly turned back around in my seat just as Justin had returned with the supplies for our experiment.

Justin turned to peer behind us again. "What are you looking at?" He wondered as he set the supplies down on the empty table space between us.

"Never mind, Justin."

He stared at me curiously. "If you don't tell me ––"

"What?" I interrupted him; anger was pulsing through me now.

He looked at me as if I had just smacked him across the face.

"Well, who's got your panties in a twist?"

Now I was embarrassed. I buried my face in my hands. "Oh my God," I said dully, trying not to laugh in the process.

Justin heard the smile in my voice and laughed. "Okay, I don't want to know," he lied. "Let's just do the experiment."

We followed the instructions carefully. I let Justin do most of the work. It was safer for everyone that way.

Mr. Doyle addressed the class: "I'll be right back. I'm going to grab some more beakers from across the hall. Go ahead and keep working."

We were almost done with the experiment when all of a sudden glass shattered and Kristy screamed.

Everyone in the class spun around to look at them. Somehow the latex glove on Rob's right hand had caught on fire. He was cringing in pain but he didn't seem worried or panicked. He tore the glove off his hand and then he scrunched it into a ball in his fist. I wondered if anyone else had noticed this swift movement. Somehow the once-flaming glove was extinguished.

No one moved to help him.

Terrified, I leapt off my stool with a gasp, grabbed his arm, and towed him to a sink at the back of the room. He fought against me the whole way.

I turned on the cold water and I reached for his hand to put it under the faucet.

Rob hid his hand behind his back.

"You're burnt!" I said under my breath because I knew the class was watching.

"I'm fine." He muttered through clenched teeth.

I arched my eyebrows intently. "You should go to the nurse!"

"No." He muttered reproachfully. He seemed fine. The fact that he probably had a three degree burn on his hand didn't seem bother him at all. I didn't understand how he could be so calm. He shoved past me and stalked out of the class.

Chemistry ended with no other injuries, but Rob didn't come back to class to finish the experiment. It was actually kind of amusing to watch Kristy as she struggled to complete the assignment by herself. She had no idea what she was doing and tried copying what she saw the people around her doing. Mr. Doyle caught her cheating and gave her a detention and an alternate assignment.

I walked to my locker after class and was shocked to see Rob standing in front of it. "Excuse me," I said icily. He stepped out of the way but didn't leave. I opened my locker and swapped my chemistry book for my history book. Rob was still standing there. "Can I help you?" I asked curtly. Looking down, I noticed his right hand was in his pocket.

"I don't know." He scowled. "Can you keep a secret?"

"What?"

"Oh don't play the blond card."

I was insulted, "I really don't know what you're talking about." I said bitterly.

"Sure, sure." He said sarcastically. "I know there's a slim chance but would you mind keeping this little incident to yourself?"

"Are you kidding?"

"Do I sound like I'm kidding?

"The whole class saw what happened." I reminded him. "You burned your hand. If it suits you to leave it that way that's your problem. Look at it this way, at least you'll be getting tons of attention; lots of sympathy. I'm sure you'll enjoy it."

Rob looked taken aback by my response. He didn't say anything and walked away.

After lunch I headed to my French class. I turned the corner, leading into the foreign language hallway, and collided with someone. My notebook slid off the top of the pile of books I was carrying and hit the floor. It all happened so fast that I hadn't even realized who I had run into. I took a step back to apologize. "Sor –– ry," I apologized awkwardly as soon as I saw who it was that I had bumped into.

"I'll survive. I've had worse accidents in a day." Rob half smiled, holding out my notebook. "And for the record, we should really stop meeting like this."

"Yeah," I agreed curtly, snatching my notebook from him. He made it difficult for me to maneuver around him. "I need to get to class," I told him sharply while sliding past him.

Rob was on my heels. "I make you nervous." He spoke deeply from behind me.

"You ran into me out of nowhere," I hissed. "Forgive me for being startled."

"No," he disagreed. "I make you nervous whenever you're around me." He prodded.

I stopped suddenly and Rob almost ran into me again. I whirled around to face him. "I think you mean whenever you're around _me_." I retorted. "Isn't there anyone else in this school you could annoy?" I asked, waving my hand around aimlessly trying to dismiss him.

Rob tried to hide a smile. "So it's true then."

I gave him a reproachful glare. "I'm not afraid of you if that's what you think."

"I know you're not afraid of me, but I do make you nervous."

I almost laughed at his assumption. "Is that what you think?"

"It's what I know."

"You don't know anything," I sneered. "You barely know me."

"Is that what _you_ think?" Rob retorted in a mocking tone.

I groaned. "I have to get to class." I said picking up my pace. Rob didn't follow.

When I got to English, at the end of the day, Rob wasn't there. I walked to my desk, bemused, sat down, and started doodling on a scrap sheet of notebook paper. After a few minutes I heard his voice.

"Hello." He greeted me politely as he slid into the desk adjacent to mine.

I frowned at my reaction. His voice gave me goosebumps again. I rubbed my right arm, trying to ignore his sudden presence.

"Did I do something?" Rob teased.

I shot him a nasty look.

He was grinning. He seemed genuinely pleased about something. And then he laughed.

"Not yet." I mocked.

This made him laugh harder. I could tell he was holding back.

"Okay, okay," he chuckled, "I guess I deserved that."

I couldn't figure out why he was being nice to me now. Rob had just spent the last week giving me a hard time. Not to mention he could have cared less in chemistry just a few hours ago. I didn't understand his sudden change of mind.

Mrs. Parker spent the hour reading her translation of the first hundred lines of Beowulf. During that time I continued to ignore Rob. I hoped I was irritating him. He deserved it, after all the crap he'd given me, especially lately.

He dropped his pencil so it conveniently landed near my foot. Instead of picking it up and handing it to him, I kicked it back at him. He tried two more times before giving up. Then he wrote something on a ripped sheaf of paper and tossed it onto my desk. I picked up the folded note and tore it in half.

The bell finally rang and I headed for my car with haste. I didn't look back because I was almost positive he was following me and I didn't want to give him the satisfaction.

I crossed through the parking lot quickly. Somehow Rob was faster. He was leaning casually against the driver's side door –– with a smug smile on his face –– as I approached my car.

"What do _you_ want?" I asked heatedly.

"Why are you mad at me?" he honestly wanted to know.

I had plenty of reasons to be angry with him. For one, he was all of a sudden being nice to me; and secondly, when I tried to help him he just turned it back in my face.

"You keep playing hot and cold, and I'm tired of it."

"I get it." He said.

I turned my back on him for a second, contemplating his response.

I spun back around to speak to him but Rob was heading towards his car, now, so I had to run to catch up to him. "No I don't think you get it." I yelled, grabbing his arm so he would stop.

He faced me, glaring. "I've been a jerk, but I have my reasons." He admitted.

"So what, you're only a jerk during school hours? Are you off duty now or something?"

"Give me a chance!" he fired back.

I laughed dryly at his request. "You blew your _chance_." I said, using his choice of words.

"Give me a fair shot." He requested in a calmer tone.

"Why?"

Rob shook his head. "You know what," he paused, rocking back on his heels. "Forget it."

"You're doing it again," I hissed.

Rob closed his eyes for a moment. "Can you at least give me credit for trying?"

"See," I said, pointing my finger at him. "That's exactly what I don't understand. Why, Rob?"

"You lost me."

"Back to square one," I replied dully.

"Elaborate," he urged.

"Okay," I agreed with an edge in my tone. "What was with the attitude this morning in Chemistry?" I shrugged. "And then in English ––"

"I didn't want it to be a big deal, and you were being all dramatic. Forgive me for not wanting the whole school to know that I ––" Rob broke off without finishing his sentence.

I stood there glaring at him. "You burned your hand!" I yelled. I still didn't understand why seemed to be so uptight about it.

Rob held out both of his hands for my inspection. "There's nothing wrong with my hand, Cassie."

I stared at his hands; they looked completely normal. But I knew I had seen his blackened hand in class. "But I ––"

He interrupted, "And in English, I was just trying to apologize for being rude."

I shook my head in disbelief.

Rob turned and continued to walk towards his car.

"Stop!" I shouted after him, my hands tightening into fists at my sides.

I was surprised when he actually did.

Rob stopped, turned to face me and threw his hands up when he spoke. "What?" He asked with an edge of exasperation in his tone.

I walked towards him, shaking my head again. "Oh no, you don't get to be mad at me," I paused. Taking a moment out of my rant to think, I changed my mind. I put up my hand to stop any snide comment he might have been thinking to share. "Forget it." I said shortly, laughing without humor at my choice of words. "I don't understand you at all! Less than a week ago you hated me. Now you're in all of my classes ––"

"Two, actually." He interrupted.

I scowled at him. "Whatever. And now you're trying to, what?" I paused thoughtfully, "be my friend? I can't keep up with you and your…your…Bipolar-ness!"

He burst out laughing. "Bipolar!"

"It's not funny!" I protested.

Rob tried to compose his face, but he was fighting a smile. "Actually it is." He said, unrepentant.

I stalked off towards my car. I was expecting him to catch up to me, but instead he called after me. I slowed to a stop and counted to ten before turning to face him.

Rob was suddenly standing in front of me again. Either he was really fast, or I was really slow.

"Sorry," he apologized as I exhaled to calm my startled nerves.

I didn't respond; I had nothing else to say to him. I stood there facing him waiting to hear whatever it was he had to say now.

"You're not very patient are you?" he almost chuckled.

My lips tightened into a hard line. This wasn't funny anymore.

"Alright, now is obviously not a good time, so I'll let you have your space." His eyes wondered the parking lot before returning to my face. "For what it's worth, I appreciate you trying to help this morning. To be honest, you are the last person I expected to come to my aide."

"Yeah…okay…whatever." I replied carelessly before turning my back on him again.


End file.
